Elderflower Collins

Name: Elderflower Collins
Prep time: 3 min
Total time: 3 min
Yield: 1 serving
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: London dry gin — 50 ml (1 2/3 oz); Elderflower liqueur — 15 ml (1/2 oz); Maraschino liqueur — 5 ml (1/6 oz); Lemon juice (freshly squeezed) — 30 ml (1 oz); Sugar syrup — 10 ml (1/3 oz); Soda water — 25 ml (5/6 oz)

Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 17.6% ABV ∙

The Elderflower Collins is a shaken gin Collins, built on London dry gin, elderflower and maraschino liqueurs, and fresh lemon, topped with soda water. Floral elderflower and cherry-tinged maraschino soften a crisp lemon bite, with the gin's juniper backbone coming through as the soda water fizzes it dry.

Ingredients

Servings

Garnish

Instructions for 1 serving

Pre-chill a glass
Shake the first 5 ingredients with ice: London dry gin 50 mlElderflower liqueur 15 mlMaraschino liqueur 5 mlLemon juice 30 mlSugar syrup 10 ml
Strain into the ice-filled glass while also pouring Soda water 25 ml
Garnish with an elderflower blossom or gypsophila (baby’s breath) or a lemon wheel

Tips

Shake the gin, elderflower liqueur, maraschino liqueur, lemon juice and sugar syrup hard for 10-12 seconds with ice, then strain into a fresh ice-filled Collins glass rather than shaking the soda.
Add the soda water last, pouring gently down the inside of the glass to preserve carbonation before a single light stir with a bar spoon.
Float the lemon wheel and tuck the elderflower blossoms and gypsophila at the rim just before serving, so the delicate blossoms stay open rather than wilting against the cold, wet glass.

History

The Elderflower Collins is a modern variation on the Collins, a gin, lemon, sugar, and soda water drink whose most established lineage traces to London. A John Collins, made with Dutch genever, is documented from at least the 1860s and is often linked to a headwaiter of that name working at Limmer's Old House, a hotel and coffee house in Mayfair active around 1790 to 1817. As Old Tom gin replaced genever in the recipe, the drink came to be called Tom Collins, and its first published recipe appeared in Harry Johnson's 1882 bartending manual. A rival account instead ties the Tom Collins name to a popular 1874 New York prank in which people were told a man named Tom Collins was spreading rumors about them, prompting them to search bars asking for him. This variation keeps the Collins format of spirit, citrus, sweetener, and soda but adds elderflower liqueur for a floral note.